As a lifelong motorsport fan and avid car enthusiast, Automated Insurance Solutions CEO, Ben Taylor finally got the chance to go racing at our local circuit, Snetterton. Here's his race report from the first outing with the Snetterton Saloons Race Series.

"A very delayed and hastily written summary of my first race experience a week or so ago.

We arrived on Saturday to watch the other series racing over the weekend. Arriving early also meant we were able to get set up in the paddock that evening to avoid any rushing around on Sunday morning ahead of a day that was always expected to be a steep learning curve! 😱

*** Qualifying ***

Sunday came and with a quick final check over the car we were out for the 20min qualifying session.

LESSON #1 - When running in a lower class, don't rush down to assembly the moment you're called.

Being a bit too eager to assembly meant that as well as being my first ever session on a 'live' racetrack, I was continually 'in the way' of faster cars compromising pretty much every lap.

LESSON #2 - If you're getting passed by faster cars, don't run off the circuit trying to get out of the way.

Towards the end of the session and whilst trying to stay out of the way of a Class A car I went deep at Hamilton and had an uncomfortable excursion across the grass.

Mercifully I managed to find some space on the final lap of the session to post a 2:20.9 lap putting me 7th in class and 24th overall.

Back to the paddock to debrief, assess and prepare the car for the race at 3pm.

*** The Race ***

I was pretty pleased with a starting position of 24th overall so it was onto a quick check of the car after the excursion over the grass at Hamilton. Everything looked good so all attention turned to the weather forecast..........

LESSON #3 - Don't EVER try to second guess the Great British Weather!

After waiting as long as possible to decide whether to make some changes we decided to stick with what we knew and run the car as it was. Off to assembly and unsurprisingly, it rained! The heavens opened and I was sat waiting in a steamed up car not aware that the start has been delayed. 🤦🏻‍♂️ As the rain eased we got underway for what was a very, very wet race.

LESSON #4 - Racecraft is something that will take some time to figure out.

After getting to grips with what were, at best, a terrifying first couple of laps, we were having some great battles out on track but on more than a couple of occasions I went backwards whilst trying to go forwards. Note to self - be aware of what's behind as well as in front when trying to make a pass. 🤬

Most importantly we made it to the end with the car in one piece and in p.16 overall which was much better than I'd have expected at the start of the day."

Ben is planning to compete in a full season in 2022 so stay tuned for future race reports and information on where he'll be racing.